Thailand's rumble in the jungle

Well, travel around rural areas of Thailand and you'll never forget the elephants and what they get up to – anything from jungle treks, painting, making music and playing soccer or polo.

The elephant, Thailand's national symbol, has thrived in show business. At a theatrical show called FantaSea on Phuket Island, up to 20 of them perform together, trunk-to-tail, on a strengthened stage.

At a conservation camp in northern Thailand, music-loving jumbos dance and swing their trunks to rock, jazz and folk music, perform on harmonicas and other instruments, and join in four-a-side soccer, tug-of-war, obstacle races and water-spraying games

They pose with one huge foot poised over the head of their mahout (trainer) on the ground below, accept bananas from spectators and demonstrate how they can work in the now-dwindling timber industry, carrying and stacking tall trees.

The elephants can make up their own music, too. The 14-member Elephant Orchestra formed in 2000 at Lampang Conservation Centre, 100km south of Chiang Mai, has played before the Queen of Thailand and recorded three CDs.

PerthNow